


Home-Grown

by gr8_rach



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Ben Solo in a plaid shirt, Cotton Candy, F/M, I apologize but you're gonna need a toothbrush and possibly even a dentist's appointment after this, Yeah that's right, farmer's market hot, this is literally just fluff, those poor peaches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-27
Updated: 2016-09-27
Packaged: 2018-08-17 14:29:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8147476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gr8_rach/pseuds/gr8_rach
Summary: Everybody knows that the best produce is fresh and local.





	

It was morning, the air crisp and sweet; the day fell right into that sweet spot between summer and fall, when it’s pretty enough to walk around without a jacket but still chilly enough for long sleeves. Or...for a flannel shirt. A blue plaid one, to be exact, with the sleeves rolled up to the swell of a very muscular forearm. Said forearm was attached to a large palm, with big fingers, flexing and clasping around a large white onion, rolling it around, testing the firmness with the meat of his hand. The flannel stretched around a shoulder, rolling as the onion passed from hand to hand. A blue plaid collar brushed the curve of a strong neck where it was tilting sideways to allow a pair of dark eyes to examine a spot on the onion more closely. 

Full, plush lips pursed thoughtfully and then opened to give way to a deep, rumbling bass. “It’s really good quality.” 

“Uh—yes! Yes it is. Very good quality.” squeaked the girl behind the counter, tearing her eyes away from the long fingers wrapping around and around the papery skin of the onion. She twirled a piece of curly brown hair around her finger nervously.

“Very firm.” the voice said. 

The girl’s eyes widened as her gaze slid from those hands to a very broad chest. “No kidding.” she sighed. 

Eyebrows furrowed. “What?” 

“I mean, we only sell the best, sir.” she said, twisting her fingers together and blinking up at the man. Her neck stretched as she tried to meet his eyes, failing and drinking in his other features instead. A long, regal nose framed by soulful brown eyes and strong brows. Feathery black hair, curling and wisping into a halo around his ears and the nape of his neck. She could tell he’d come here without shaving; there was a light dusting of dark facial hair around his cheeks, chin, neck.

When she dared to meet his eyes again, he was still gazing at her steadily. She flushed anew and averted her eyes once more. 

“Jessika, is it?” he said. The sound of his voice wrapping around her name sent shivers through her. 

“I’m Jessika. That’s right.” She touched the paper name-tag stuck to her shirt. 

“Well then, Jessika. You don’t have to call me ‘sir.’ ‘Ben’ will do just fine.” He passed the onion to his left hand and brushed a long finger from his right hand against his name-tag. 

“....Ben.” she said, looking up at him and fighting against her almost-fluttering eyelids. 

For a long moment he stared into her eyes, the deep brown melting and solidifying, sending warmth through her belly and up into her spine, curling deliciously in the back of her neck.

“Yes?” Ben said, breaking her gaze. 

“Oh! Uh—w-would you like me to bag a few onions for you?” she said, groping under the table for a paper bag. 

“Thank you, Jessika, but not now. I’m almost done with my once-around and then I’ll come back and make my purchases.” Ben smiled and gestured behind him to the other booths. The sheer good-naturedness of his smile had Jessika struggling to breathe as she wished him well in the rest of his morning. 

Ben moved on, shooting her a last warm smile as he walked away and towards the next booth—homemade cotton candy mixes. 

“Hello! Would you like to try some?” the woman behind the counter said, smiling brightly at Ben. She had bottle-blonde hair, bright red lips and smooth coppery skin. A nametag on her shirt read ‘Bazine.’

Ben smiled back, just as bright, and Bazine felt her heart give a tiny, involuntary squeeze. 

“Absolutely—what kind do you have for sampling?” he said. 

She pretended to check the label of the bag she was holding, instead inspecting her lipstick in the metallic sheen of the plastic bag. “It’s bubblegum.” she declared, rolling the hem of the bag down so that he could reach in with his long fingers and pluck a piece of cotton candy out. 

He stuck his tongue out and placed the spun sugar in his mouth, closing his lips around his fingers, sucking to be sure to gather all of the extra sugar. 

Bazine’s flawless smile faltered slightly as Ben removed the fingers from his mouth and then replaced them one by one. 

“This is really good! I’ll have to come back for some, definitely.” Ben said. 

When he noticed her staring, he smiled sheepishly and shrugged. “I like sweet things.”

Instantly, Bazine’s mouth went dry. “Is that so?” she said, clutching the wood of her table and leaning forward. The gauzy fabric of her blouse opened slightly, revealing a hint of collarbone and smooth skin. 

Ben grinned now, eyes fixed firmly on her face as he spoke. “Oh yes, I have something of a sugar addiction.” 

“You’ve come to the right place, for sure. Everything here is sweet as sugar, I assure you.” 

“I have no doubt—30 flavors!” Ben said, gesturing to the board behind Bazine. She straightened and looked behind her. 

“Yeah—we aim to... _please_...our customers.” she said, reaching forward to place her hand on Ben’s. 

But her hand was met with empty air—Ben had moved to grab and inspect one of the business cards on the side of her table. 

“Can I take one of these?” he said, waving it at her. “You’ve got a really brilliant thing going here. Kids must love this!” 

“For you, I’d be willing to offer a _special_ deal. You can take whatever you’d like.” Bazine said, reaching up to brush her fingers through the blonde curls arranged on the top of her head. 

Ben laughed, throwing his head back, the black waves of his hair tossing deliciously against his forehead. “That’s good to know. I’ll be sure to catch you and pay first, though. Wouldn’t want to steal any of your profit away from you! I know how hard it is to run a business like this. I’ll definitely back for some of that cotton candy. I know a kid who’d really love it.” 

He moved to walk away then, giving a short, cordial wave to Bazine. She waved back with a small frown, the perfect red of her lips pursing. 

The man and woman at the last booth, having watched the entire exchange, braced themselves. No way was this over-sized, over-attractive man pulling one over them because he flashed a few charming smiles their way. 

Ben walked under the awning and began to inspect the fruit arranged in baskets along the table. He picked up an enormous white peach, rubbing the tips of his fingers over the soft, fuzzy skin and then cupping it to squeeze and test the firmness of the fruit. A slow smile spread across his lips as the flesh gave just a little, indicating perfect ripeness. 

The woman, Aayla, it said on her tag reached behind her and clutched at the man’s hand. He gulped as well, leaning forward to push her towards a cutting board with one of the white peaches on it, already sliced for sampling. She caught on and snatched it up, weaving around the table to stand behind him. 

“Excuse me sir—sir?” she said. He turned, still twisting his fingers around the peach, his eyebrows raised thoughtfully. 

“Ben.” he said, smiling and flashing his teeth at her. “Yes?” 

“I noticed you looking at our white peaches and I thought—I wondered if you might like to try a piece?” 

“Oh, yes!” he said, setting the peach down and reaching towards the cutting board. “Which of these…?”

“Oh! Any of them.” she said, offering the board to him. “They’re home-grown. By us. In our backyard, really. Kit’s the one who knows how to get them so big.” she gestured behind her with her free hand, and Kit, the man behind the counter, flushed under Ben’s impressed gaze, reaching up to scratch at the side of his head. 

Ben cradled the small piece of ripe fruit between his fingers, letting some of the excess juice drip down onto the board before eating it in one bite. 

Kit and Aayla both stiffened as Ben moaned, _moaned_ as he chewed the peach. 

“This is the sweetest peach I have ever tasted. You guys must be using cocaine to fertilize that tree.”

Aayla tried to speak but nothing came out of her mouth. Kit rounded the table and came to stand beside her, regaining his composure a little more quickly and offering the cutting board back to him. 

“Would you like another?” he said. Ben nodded enthusiastically and took the biggest piece—a little less than half of the peach—off the pile.

“These are magical—if they all taste like this, I want all of them. The whole tent full.” he said, but Kit and Aayla were staring at his hand, mesmerized by the juices from the peach dripping, sluggish and sugary, down his long fingers and into the palm of his hand. 

“Oh! No!” he said, cupping his hand and putting the peach to his lips, digging his mouth into the meat of it. His teeth sank into the middle of it and he chewed, slurping and lapping at the juices oozing from the sides before giving an exasperated sigh and putting the whole thing in his mouth. 

Aayla lost her grip on the cutting board, startling herself and Kit as it clattered against the legs of the table. She dropped to the ground immediately and busied herself gathering the fallen peach slices. 

Ben, unaware of the commotion he’d caused, turned to Kit with juice dripping down his chin and wiped the back of his hand over his mouth. “Can I get a bag full of these?” he asked, his eyes alight. 

Kit nodded, still stunned and frozen. After a moment, Ben frowned slightly and reached out for Kit’s shoulder. 

“Are you okay?” 

When his warm palm made contact, Kit snapped out of his reverie and turned to the table to grab a paper bag. 

“Yeah! Sorry. Here.” 

“So what is the deal with pricing?” Ben said, reaching for the peaches and setting a few into the bottom of his bag carefully. 

“A small bag as full as you can manage for $5.” Kit managed, reaching down to help Aayla up off the ground. When she was standing beside him, he reached up to pull a piece of grass out of her hair, the springy curls brushing back over her forehead as he let them go. 

Ben started laughing. “You’re kidding, right? 12 lb boxes are going for $8 right now. I’m not paying $5 for this unless I can fit 10 lbs of peaches in this bag.” 

Kit frowned. “These are the best peaches in the state, Ben.” 

“And I’m the best produce negotiator in the state. That’s not going to sway me.” 

Aayla folded her arms. “$5 for the full bag.” 

“$7 for two of them.” 

Aayla opened her mouth to protest, but Kit put his hand on her arm. “Deal.” 

Ben handed the cash over and walked away with the bags. Kit wiped the sweat off his forehead with the sleeve of his shirt, and Aayla watched Ben walk away, shaking her head and chuckling. 

“What a man.” 

“No kidding.” 

They watched as Ben walked further along the path, stopping at different booths and making deals surprisingly efficiently. About halfway along the path, his whole face lit up and he bent down to set his bags on the ground, settling into a crouch and opening his arms. 

“Daddy!!” yelled a small little girl, her hair pulled back into three buns along the back of her head. 

“Lissa!” he crowed, wrapping her in his arms and hugging her tight. 

Kit and Aayla watched as a woman, tall and thin, dressed in a slim sweatshirt and jeans, and with a hairstyle similar to Lissa’s, walked up to Ben and rested her hand in his hair, ruffling it affectionately. 

“Hey, sorry we’re late. Lissa here decided to take five million years getting dressed.” she said. 

“Oh, no worries, I went ahead and got most of the things I needed. Except….” he let go of Lissa and stood up. “How do you feel about cotton candy for your second breakfast? I met a lady who sells the most delicious cotton candy in the whole world.” 

With a grin, he held his hand out and took her tiny fingers in his, walking back towards the booth next to Kit and Aayla’s. 

From close up, they could see the woman and child more clearly. 

“Some people have all the luck, don’t they?” said Aayla. 

“I seriously have never seen such a wholesomely beautiful family.” Kit agreed. 

“Rey! Try some of this!” Ben said, and as Rey turned her head, he brought his sugary fingers to her lips. She accepted the bit of cotton candy with a smirk, biting the edge of one of his fingertips as he withdrew his hand. He gasped and the two laughed together. 

“Come on, Ben.” Rey said, wrapping an arm around his waist. “Let’s go home and enjoy some of this produce you picked out.” 

“Oh, Rey—they had these peaches that are to die for! Good honey this season, too. And I spoke to that company about delivering milk and eggs. Talked them down $3/month.” 

“That’s my Ben. Saving us from overpriced grocery delivery! Your daddy is a superhero.” she said, squeezing Lissa’s hand. 

“Naw,” Ben said, leaning over to kiss Rey soundly. “I just know my produce.”

**Author's Note:**

> ......I blame ViciousRhythm for whatever it is that happened here


End file.
